jueves, 20 de abril de 2017

Westminster to debate on a democratic solution for Catalonia

CNA / Sara Prim

London (CNA).- The need to find a democratic solution in
response to Catalonia’s political demands and to overcome the current
deadlock will be discussed this Wednesday at Westminster. The debate
will be the first event organized by the All-Party
Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Catalonia, created this past March in the
British Parliament and bringing together 21 all-party representatives
from the Chamber of Commons and the Chamber of Lords. The debate,
moderated by the British branch of the pro-independence association
Catalan National Assembly, will include SNP MP George
Kerevan one of the main promoters of the APPG, and Plaid Cymru MP, Hywel
Williams. In addition to these two politicians, former Consul General
in Barcelona for Great Britain, Geoff Cowling, Daily Mirror´s Head of
Politics, Jason Beattie and former Catalan government official and
Lecturer in Sociolinguistics, Michael Strubell, will also take part in
the debate.

“This is what we would like other parliaments to do,” said Catalan
Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raül Romeva, when he inaugurated the APPG
on the 14th of March. He lamented the lack of a similar predisposition
in Spain’s Congreso de los Diputados. “Sometimes, there is more interest
in discussing the Catalan question here than in Spain,” he added.

The APPG on Catalonia is an initiative launched by the Scottish
National Party (SNP) but which is made up of 21 MPs and Peers from six
different parties. According to Romeva, this cross-party nature proves
that the Catalan question “is essentially about democracy” and therefore
should “concern all those who believe in democratic principles”. “The
aim of the APPG is to analyze this particular matter, regardless of the
members’ ideologies,” he said and praised the member’s “common
conviction that this is a topic which deserves to be discussed.”
According to Romeva, the “concern” regarding the situation in Catalonia
“is logical”, bearing in mind that it is occurring “in the 21st century
and within the EU framework”. In this context, “political disagreements
should be addressed through democracy and not by using the courts,
threats, or pressures,” he warned.

‘A Demoratic Solution for Catalonia’ is the first event held by the
APPG since the official inauguration in March. The debate will include
the participation of SNP MP George Kerevan, Plaid Cymru MP Hywel
Williams, the former Consul General in Barcelona for Great Britain,
Geoff Cowling, Catalan News Agency EU Correspondent for the CNA, Laura
Pous, Daily Mirror´s Head of Politics, Jason Beattie, former Catalan
government official and Lecturer in Sociolinguistics, Michael Strubell,
and Catalan National Assembly International Committee Chair, Montse
Daban.

The event will take place in Atlee Suite, in Westminster at 7 pm and
is due to start with an opening statement from each panelist, followed
by a panel debate, before moving to Q&As.